


I Get Off

by OnigiriLady



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Hunger Games Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Crush, F/M, First Crush, Fluff and Smut, Friendship, Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark Smut, Masturbation, Oral Sex, Sex, Showers, Slow Romance, Voyeurism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2019-12-18 16:18:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18253415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnigiriLady/pseuds/OnigiriLady
Summary: Katniss is living alone after Prim left to university, but her long term crush and new neighbour will give her quite a lot to occupy her time.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Everlark stories have been my addiction for the past few years, but this was my first time writing one. It all came to me while I was driving and this song came up on my playlist - I Get Off by Halestorm. And then I couldn't help but picture a story with these two. I mean, literally. I felt like I owed to myself to write it down, this was killing me.
> 
> So… there you go! I hope you like it!
> 
> I'm not a native English speaker, apologies for any mistakes (and please do let me know if you find any, I'll be more than happy to improve the text). 
> 
> =)

It was almost 10pm on a cold Friday night when Katniss finally parked her car in front of the two-story rented house in the suburbs of District Twelve. Prim had just moved out a few weeks before, to the university campus across the country, and would be away for a few years. That is, if she ever returned.

Katniss was exhausted, as she had been working her ass off in the previous few weeks, doing everything in her power to prevent the new investors from destroying a considerable area of the District Park to build a new business complex. She loved her hard earned job, but sometimes it was too much for one person to endure and she often felt like she was the only one in her department that actually cared for the preservation of the Park.

She made her way to the porch in a slow pace, lazily stopping to note that the lights in her neighbor's house were still on. She unlocked the door while taking off her boots and left them right where they fell on the hall. Her tired body screamed for a hot shower and she didn't even bother turning on the lights of the first floor. She was used to the darkness and moved easily towards the stairs, going straight to the joined bathroom of her room and tossing her clothes on her way.

Katniss turned the shower on and waited for the temperature to settle before stepping in. She moaned as the hot sprays washed her long day away, and smoothed the shampoo on her hair, enjoying the fresh scent of mint. She used the body wash, rinsed and allowed herself another minute under the shower. When she was finished, Katniss wrapped the towel around her body and brushed her teeth in the sink.

Even though the old heating in the house still left room for cool air, Katniss didn't mind putting on any clothes as she made her way to the dressing table close to the windows. One of the things she loved the most about the house was that all rooms had very wide windows, stretching almost from wall to wall. She brushed her hair while looking outside her window with a pointed interest, observing the outline of her neighbor moving around the kitchen.

They knew each other since they were kids. But in fact, that was stretching reality a little bit.

The truth was that Katniss had a long term crush on said neighbor. Ever since she was a little girl wearing two braids at school, she had been fixated with him. She still remembered the first time their eyes crossed. She probably looked like a dead fish gaping at how incredibly blue his eye were. Being a shy kid, Katniss had grown up admiring Peeta Mellark from a close distance. They had shared some friends and classes back then, but never really had a full conversation.

Peeta had always been polite towards her but never the super warm and friendly version he showed off to everyone else. When they were teenagers, Katniss could swear he avoided her on purpose. And then he had become stupidly handsome, the guy every girl wanted to date during high school. He had even been Prom King and was first place in the State Wrestling Championship.

Strangely enough, he had always evaded being too close to the futile girls from school, even though he could have dated any of them, even Glimmer, who was now a Victoria's Secret model. He used to go to every party or social gathering and treated everyone else like he was their best friend, and was constantly hanging out with the wrestling team. But Katniss had known even then that his real passion was sketching and painting.

She would often see him at the Park, sketchbook on his lap and a concentrated look on his face. On some days she would sit under a shadow and watch him for a while, before getting up and silently making her way back through the trail.

When they graduated everyone knew he should have gone to university, but somehow he stayed in District Twelve. He had always helped in his parents' bakery, and took over their business two years back, when she finally understood why he stayed. And for Katniss' surprise, Peeta had moved to the house next door by the same time Prim moved out.

Katniss couldn't have gone to university even if she wanted to. Her mother passed away that same year, too fragile after her father's death a few years back. She was all Prim had then, and she decided to sell the family's old house to pay for the debt they acquired in the previous years and to help her and Prim get a start in life. Her distant uncle on her mother's side helped them with the paperwork, but Katniss was already 18 and decided not to let Haymitch take them in. She knew he had a long date alcohol addiction and didn't want to risk putting Prim in a bad environment.

So Katniss rented a smaller house four years ago and made it a home for them. Prim had worked part time and helped with the bills, but it had been mostly Katniss working two shifts and making sure they had everything they needed.

In the present, her life was much more comfortable and she was even able to save some cash for any emergencies or future needs. Prim moved out and was pursuing her dream of becoming a doctor. Katniss could say she was content. She kept very few friends from school and now had a couple of colleagues at work.

Her love life, on the other hand, was an utter disaster. Aside from Peeta, she never had strong feelings for anyone and well... Peeta wasn't really a constant in her life. Gale was her closest friend but he was head over heels for Madge, the Mayor's daughter and also Katniss' friend. Besides, the mere thought of engaging romantically with Gale made her cringe. They were almost siblings.

Madge used to try and set Katniss up with some random guys, but after the last blind date Katniss reluctantly went to, she pretty much told Madge to stop bothering her about it, or she would tell Gale about how Madge dreamed about dating him back in middle school. That seemed to be working so far.

Katniss shook her head trying to clear her thoughts, putting the hair brush down on the dresser. Then she saw that all the lights went off in Peeta's house. She sighed tiredly and went to her bed, climbing under the blankets. She stared at the ceiling for a while, until she saw light coming from Peeta's room. He usually slept with the windows open, and that night was no different. She watched as he made his way to the window and distractedly took his shirt off.

It wasn't the first time Katniss spied on her neighbour. The effect of the past few years on him were unbelievable. Katniss constantly thought that no man could be hotter than that. Peeta's hair was shorter now, but long enough for his curls to show. His jaw was firm and he frequently had a light stubble, framing thin lips and high cheekbones. His eyes were always gentle, shining like blue orbs with long blond eyelashes. He was tall enough and had a nice frame. A very nice, strong, six packed frame.

She felt like a silly girl pinning for a hot guy that would never look her way. But from the shadows of her room, she couldn't care less. She just kept watching.

At one point, Peeta looked straight to her window and she was almost sure he could see her in the darkness. But few seconds have passed when Peeta signed and turned away from his window. She could see now that he was wearing only his dark boxers and she wondered what it would feel like to be pressed against him, her hands roaming down his back until she reached his nicely shaped ass and squeezed him closer to her.

Peeta was already under his blankets when Katniss recovered, and he only had the bedside lamp on. He seemed to be sketching something, his brows furrowed in concentration. Katniss decided she should get some sleep, even though the next morning would be a Saturday. She planned to have an early start, running a bit and then getting supplies in the local stores for the following week.

***

♪♫♬

You don't know that I know,  
You watch me every night  
And I just can't resist the urge  
To stand here in the light

Your greedy eyes upon me  
And then I come undone  
And I could close the curtains  
But this is too much fun

♪♫♬

***

In her dream that night, she observed Peeta and an unknown woman embrace affectionately, giggling their happiness while eating freshly baked cheese buns. She could smell the delicious flavour and tried to reach out to get one, but the more she tried, the more distant the scene got, until she realised she was stuck in a windowless dark room, with a small door and a faint light seeping through the keyhole. When she crouched to see through the hole, all she could see was a table with bread crumbs.

Katniss woke to her alarm ringing loudly on her nightstand. She knew during the dream that it wasn't real, but still felt stupid for having such a childish and obvious narrative for a nightmare. She forced her body out of the bed and into the bathroom to start her morning routine.

When she was finally outside her house, wearing black leggings, a sports bra and a track jacket, she started stretching, feeling her muscles loosening and waking up. She put her earphones on and took the road headed Downtown. She enjoyed cold mornings with clear skies, soaking in the sunlight without feeling too hot. She felt peaceful, the stupid dream basically forgotten.

Arriving at the main street, Katniss produced a shopping list from her jacket pockets, going through the items that Prim had scribbled carefully on a post-it a few days back, before moving out. Her heart warmed remembering how Prim was such a natural caregiver. She was the younger sister, but often acted like a mother, more so when it came down to cooking and leaving Katniss to fend for herself. There were no words to describe how bad Katniss' cooking skills were.

Katniss' happy thoughts came to a halt when her eyes reached a specific item in the shopping list.

Bread.

Fuck no.

Prim was aware of her ridiculous crush on Peeta Mellark and was basically forced by her older sister to be the one always showing up at the Mellark Bakery, as both girls refused to shop from other bakeries in town. They just knew Mellark's was the best.

Prim would now and then drop pieces of information about Peeta's life to Katniss. That was how she knew he had chosen the bakery over university. From Prim, she also got word that Peeta made a statement at ensuring the quality of the goods sold at the bakery. Which meant he baked some of the treats himself, but also supervised closely the only two employees the small business could afford. Which also meant he would surely be there when she stopped by.

She felt a slight panic coming up, but quickly cursed herself and repeated in her mind that she was old enough to stop that foolishness. Then she wondered how bad the other bakeries could really be... and cursed again. She took a breath and thought about how she could only do difficult things out of impulse. And decided to get this over with once and for all. Like ripping off a band-aid.

She marched with firm steps to Mellark Bakery and pushed the glass door open. She startled at the door bell sounding and looked up at the frame where three little bells hung. She hadn't been inside that bakery ever since she was a small child, before even meeting Peeta at school.

"Good morning!", said a muffled male voice. Katniss tried to locate the person, but didn't see anyone.

"Uhm, good morning", she replied warily.

Then someone popped up from behind the counter and Katniss felt like she got punched in the gut. There he was, bright blue eyes, gold curls and perfect smile. He was wearing a plain white button down shirt and a white apron could be seen strapped behind his neck. But his clothes couldn't hide how wide his shoulders were and how strong he was built. Katniss concentrated on not looking as dumbstruck as she felt. 

The second Peeta took in the person on the other side of the counter, his smile faltered a little and he blinked in surprise. He recovered quickly though and flashed a smile that would make any toothpaste brand kill for having him on a TV commercial.

"Katniss", said Peeta in a soft voice. "Long time no see. How have you been?"

Katniss just stood there, trying to figure out if she really saw him almost losing his cool after realizing she was the one entering the bakery. After a few seconds she caught up to his question and rushed an answer.

"Hey... hey Peeta. I've been doing good." She fell silent and then remembered to have manners and asked "How about you?"

Thinking nothing of her strange reaction, he promptly answered "Good! Things are improving for the bakery, so... yeah, good." And then after a few more seconds of staring awkwardly at each other "I heard Prim went away to university. Thinking about it now, that means I'll be seeing you a lot from now on, right?" He said and Katniss half ignored her brain telling her that he used a hopeful tone.

Katniss was caught off guard again in a very short amount of time and was starting to feel very uncomfortable.

"Yes, she realized she would be stuck with her antisocial older sister and thought better of it. Always wise, that little one." She did what she did best when she felt cornered. Well, second best. Her best would be fleeing as fast as possible but that wouldn't apply here. Her self-deprecating joke made Peeta chuckle and she smiled a little.

"Right. Well, how can I help you today?" he said, blue eyes glued on her grey ones.

"Uhm, Prim used to get us bagels, but I think I'm more of a cheese bun person." She said, pushing away the memory of her earlier dream and looking away from his intense stare.

Peeta beamed at her and she was again unprepared when he half moaned in reply "Oooh Katniss. Now we're talking. Cheese buns happen to be my very own specialty!"

Katniss tried not to blush violently at her name moaned by his lips, even if she knew there was no sexual connotation to his words. She managed to get out in a steady voice "Is that so? I will hold you to your word then." She said, even though she already knew from experience that he wasn't lying.

"Yeah, you do that." He winked at her. "In fact, there's a batch coming out in about five minutes. You got here pretty early... Care to wait a bit?"

"Sure, no problem. I went out for a run and intend to go through my shopping list before going home."

"Good, I'll get you some in a few minutes then." He looked at the clock and then eyed her up and down with a quizzical expression, blushing a litte. Katniss could feel her body temperature rising and concentrated on not thinking anything of his actions, but he soon completed "So you like running? I also do my share of exercising, but my crazy hours only allow me to do that around lunch time or at night."

Katniss nodded. "I prefer hiking, but sometimes going for a run is just what my body and mind need".

He looked at her knowingly. "I can relate to that." Then he looked at the clock again and excused himself to the kitchen.

Katniss stood in the middle of the empty bakery and looked at her feet, willing her brain to process everything. Then her mind snapped and she remembered the clothes she had been wearing, looking like a total mess. She looked at the glass window in the front of the store and saw her own image looking back at her, braid disheveled, a few strands sticking to her forehead and her cheeks pink with her previous effort and probably some blushing from their conversation. She kicked herself for being so... Katniss. And then she also took note that she barged in the bakery with her jacket open, showing a considerable amount of skin between the mid waisted leggings and the sports bra. She quickly closed the zipper of the jacket and tried to force the loose strands back into place.

She still had her hands on her hair when Peeta slowly made his way to her, a tray in his hands with a mug of coffee and a couple of cheese buns. "I thought you could try them out before ordering some! And some coffee is never too bad, right?"

Katniss felt her heart skipping a beat at how attentive he was being, but never had the chance to thank him because at that exact moment a group of older ladies bursted into the bakery talking loudly and interrupting them.

Peeta had to excuse himself again to service the ladies, as Katniss sat at a small table at the corner to savour her breakfast. Of course the cheese buns were outstanding, but she was also surprised to taste one of the best coffees she had ever had.

Not wanting to drag the situation any longer, she headed to the counter and found Peeta arranging a tray of pastries. "Hey. Thank you so much for the breakfast. I now agree that you make the best cheese buns around here! I think I'll take a dozen, please."

Peeta raised his eyes and looked delighted at her compliment. "I'm glad you enjoyed it, Katniss. Here you go, a dozen cheese buns. That will be 8 dollars. The breakfast is on the house." He said, handing her a paper bag.

"Oh no, I wouldn't accept that!"

"Katniss. Please. Think of it as a welcome gift!" He insisted.

"Why? I'm not a new customer..."

"Then accept it so you come back more often." he said, scratching the back of his neck and looking down with a shy smile.

This guy would be the death of her.

"Urgh. Fine." She said with a scowl that made him laugh, and obviously made her scowl even more.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to laugh at you. It's just that… you haven't changed a bit".

Katniss was starting a sharp retort when she caught herself. What the hell was that supposed to mean? And why the hell did he think he knew her enough to say that? She managed to hand him the cash and reply politely before making her way to the exit "Right… well, thanks Peeta. I'll see you around."

She left before he could say anything else and focused on getting her shopping list sorted out as fast as possible. She spent only a few minutes in the bakery but for some reason felt tired. It must have been the whole running thing.

When Katniss arrived home, she dropped the bags in the kitchen counter and arranged the items in the fridge and in the cabinet. The last one was a brown paper bag with a bread insignia, and she stared at it as if it could bite. She left it untouched in the counter and went upstairs for a shower. 

The rest of her morning was spent tidying the house as best as she could. Then she remembered Prim had threatened to choke her in her sleep if she forgot to take care of the garden next to the driveway. Katniss loved the outdoors and the woods, but had little patience to take care of flowers and garden plants. Still, she made her way to the garden with the tool box Prim left her and the watering can. Katniss knew her way around the garden and concentrated at the task.

She concentrated so much that she didn't notice a car coming up the neighbor's driveway. She was startled by the sound of the car doors being shut and raised her head in curiosity. It seemed that the universe was trying to mess up with her on that specific day. She looked back to her house calculating how fast she could get there befor-

"Katniss!!" said the now familiar voice. "Never saw you out here gardening. Need any help?"

She looked up to see Peeta Fucking Mellark standing just a few feet from her, looking like a vision out of her wet dreams. She tried really hard not to fixate her gaze on his fit jeans or how the T-shirt he changed into was clinging to all the right places. When she finally met his gaze, she almost chuckled at his bright smile. Seriously, why was this happening to her? 

"Peeta. Hi… no, but thank you. I also have some talents of my own." She said curtly and got up. "I'm almost finished anyway". And as soon as she said that, her stomach growled loud enough for him to hear.

She concentrated on a maintaining a poker face, but the ever polite man before her said calmly as if nothing had happened "You look like you're doing a great job indeed."

Katniss considered his words while looking at the fresh pruning on the plants. "Yeah, I guess." And then she excused herself and started to head back to the house, trying to walk at a normal pace.

”Hey, Katniss!" she heard Peeta say hesitantly and turned around to look at him. "I was wondering if you had any plans for the rest of the day?" he said, shoving his hand in his pockets and looking sheepish. Looking too fucking gorgeous, Katniss though.

"”Uhm… What was that?" said Katniss, unsure if she was going crazy and hearing things. 

"I said I was wondering if you had any plans for the rest of the day." he said, firmly this time, a smile starting to form on his face.

Katniss considered him for a moment, trying to think of any excuse she could to avoid answering the truth, that her only plans involved a lot of Netflix and maybe reviewing some of the reports she had brought home from work. Her very lame plans.

"Err, I don't really know..." she muttered, it was the only thing she could come up with. 

"I will go to the kitchen and start a late lunch now. I always cook a lot, but on weekdays I take most of the food to the Bakery so everyone has healthy meals during their shifts. But on Saturdays I just keep cooking too much for no one special. Maybe you could join me today?"

OoOoOoOoO


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, everyone!
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos and for the awesome comments on the first Chapter, they really kept me writing these past few days!
> 
> I'm trying to keep up even during workdays, but this week has been super busy for me. I intend for this story to have 4 Chapters total!
> 
> =)
> 
> Enjoy!

It was early afternoon when Katniss found herself sitting on a stool in Peeta's kitchen, biting some pastries he took home from the Bakery.

She had already cut some parsley to add to the seasonings according to Peeta’s instructions, who was now mixing a very complex-looking sauce in a bowl. How her day went from almost peacefully shopping for supplies to helping Peeta prepare a lunch they were supposed to enjoy together, was still a mess of confusing events in her mind.

“Let me help with something else, I feel bad just watching you do all this.” Katniss said. Not that she would mind watching him all day.

“You already helped a lot!” he said picking up the plate of parsley and adding it to the sauce. “I was the one who invited you in the first place, and my guests don’t usually get their hands dirty. Why don’t you get started on some beer and I’ll join soon?” he finished with a bright smile, opening the fridge and sliding a bottle in her direction.

Katniss couldn’t help but smile a bit too. She gladly caught the bottle and gulped it down.

She observed with a dreamy look while Peeta moved around the kitchen so naturally as if he had done it a million times before. And he probably had. Then all she could concentrate on was how his arm muscles flexed and how even through the T-shirt she could see his strong back forcing his way while cutting the chicken on the tray. Her mind wandered to very distant places and warmth started to pool low in her belly. It should be illegal for a guy to be this hot, she thought.

He finished setting up the chicken and closed the oven, then leaned over the counter in front of her, supporting his weight on his elbows and looking straight into her eyes. She made an effort not to look startled and sat straighter, staring back at him.

"What?"

“Your eyes are stunning, Katniss.” he said in a low voice, a light smile on his expression.

Her reaction was one of surprise, and she looked away. “Yeah, I get that a lot, the colour of ash and lifeless things, haha…”

He shook his head and kept looking at her. “Nonsense. I think your eyes match how fierce you are. Determined and with a glow of their own.”

“Peeta.” she said in a censoring tone.

“No, Katniss. You were never good at receiving compliments and always make jokes when you don’t know what to say.” he said, but despite his words, his voice and expression were gentle, almost understanding. And then he smiled and completed “But don’t get me wrong, even that is cute about you.”

What on earth was going on? There it was again, the same implication and tone he had used in the Bakery earlier, as if he knew her closely for a long time.

At that moment, something snapped in Katniss’ head. Peeta was acting very unlike himself since that morning. Well, very unlike himself towards her, at least. How did they transition from awkwardly avoiding each other to this? Maybe he had been alone for a while, saw her at the Bakery and thought they could get some fun together. He was never one to brag or keep tabs on his hookups, but somehow Katniss always got word about the girls he went out with. A few girls here and there, but never a serious commitment.

OK, she thought. Two could play that game.

If he wanted to have fun, she could work with that. She could be satisfied to have done that at least once, instead of regretting not taking the chance. Even if it was just this. Fun. Even if it meant things would get awkward afterwards. It wouldn’t be much of a change from their previous dynamic anyway.

To hell with all that.

Katniss had never been the femme fatale type and had no intention to be, but if she would flirt her way around him, she wasn’t going for ‘cute’. Screw cuteness. A plan started to form in her head, and she would make him suffer a bit before he got what he wanted.

She had been silent for a while, but she made up her mind and raised her eyes to look at the blue orbs in his and stated with a grin “Thanks. You’re kinda cute cooking for me too.”

She watched almost in slow motion as his eyebrows shot up and he looked doubtful. Then he cleared his throat and made his way to grab two more bottles of beer from the fridge, but she could see his ears were red from blushing.

She gave herself an internal high five.

“So… Sometimes at the Bakery, Prim would fill me in on how your life was going, but I lost my source now. I guess you are gonna have to step up...” he said while opening his bottle and passing a second one to Katniss, standing by her side. She had just noticed how good he smelled, a light fragrance reminding her of cinnamon.

“She did what?”

“Oh, you know. I would ask her how things were at home and she would tell me a little bit about it and about you too. So what have you been up to?”

“Right. To be honest, life so far has been all about Prim and work.” she confessed tiredly.

“Sounds exhausting.”

“Tell me about it. I mean, I love Prim and I would literally die for her. Work is also much better than serving tables at the cafe or the shifts at the tool store like I did before, but recently things have been very demanding at the office.”

“I can relate to that. But ever since I took over the Bakery and got my own place, life has been much easier on me. Maybe you will get some rest now that Prim is away?” he said in a calming voice.

Katniss laughed at that “Yeah, I’m sure life will be awesome from now on. Just me, the TV and my disgusting food!”

“You know you could count a certain neighbor in." he said sheepishly.

"What for, your disgusting food?"

The joke granted her a loud laughter from Peeta, who threw his head back in joy. Which also gave her a very nice view of his neck and jaw, and she had to resist the urge to bite him just to check if he tasted as delicious as he looked.

"Oh yes, my disgusting food and my other hidden talents, in case you need them."

She caught his meaning but decided to ignore it for now, and they just kept chatting some more. It actually felt good, talking about life and laughing together. She spilled more words to him in 5 minutes than she had her entire life.

"OK, how about we take a bet?" he said with a wide grin.

"Oh? Sounds interesting." said Katniss, getting more in the flirting mood she decided upon. It didn't matter that this might be due to the second beer in her hand.

"If you are impressed with my cooking skills after we eat today, you have to promise that you will let me cook for you again soon."

"You sound confident that you are going to win. What if you lose?"

"If I lose, you can ask me anything and I will do it."

"Wait, let me see if I understood this. If you win, I get a home cooked meal. If I win, I get anything I want from you. The way I see it, I already won." she said, trying not to laugh.

Realization dawned on him and his cheeks got a slight blush. "When you put it like this..."

"Too late to back off, Peeta. A bet is a bet." she said, teasing him.

"The way I see it, I also win in both scenarios." he said with a lopsided grin. "Either way, I get to spend more time with you."

Katniss was able to not look affected by his last statement and kept the pace of their half conversation, half dispute. "I think you are getting ahead of yourself. What if you lose and I ask you to spend an entire day picking up trash from the Park? Or two months eating other people's food?"

Peeta placed his right hand over his heart and feigned a hurt expression. "God, you're so evil!"

Katniss laughed and tried to look innocent. "I can decide on that later. We talked a lot about me. What have you been up to?"

"Nothing too exciting. Just concentrating on giving the Bakery a modern setting, cooking and sketching or painting whenever I have the time."

"I wish I could see some of your paintings one of these days." she said, more to herself than to Peeta, but the words were out of her mouth before she could realize.

Peeta beamed at her with such a bright smile that she choked on her beer. "We have some time before the food is ready! Let me take you to my art room. I don’t usually show my work to other people, but I will open an exception for you." At that, he took her hand and gently pulled her down from the stool.

Together, they headed upstairs to the first door in the corridor. All the way up, Katniss kept staring at their joined hands, feeling his hold strong, but gentle enough to almost feel like a caress. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and concentrated on slowing it down. 

He stepped in the room and gave her hand a light squeeze before releasing it to turn the lights on and gestured her to get in. Katniss stood at the threshold, taken by the view in front of her. At the opposite wall, a huge painting was hanging, in a simple but thick wooden frame. It was a beautiful rendering of the central lake at the Park, sunset colors permeating the sky. The accuracy of the painting was stunning, but there was also a dreamy atmosphere to it.

“Peeta.” she whispered breathless and walked past him to take a closer look at his masterpiece. “This is the most beautiful painting I have ever seen!” she exclaimed, looking back at him.

Of course at that moment he also looked stupidly handsome with one hand in his pocket and the other scratching the back of his head, looking at her from beneath his golden eyelashes. “You clearly have never visited museums before.” he said.

“Sure, and I’m the one who doesn’t know how to receive compliments.” she said with an eye roll. Katniss looked at the painting one last time and noticed a tiny silhouette of a person at the far side of the lake. “Seriously, the detail and how you painted so many tree species is impressive.”

“Thanks, Katniss. It means a lot coming from you.”

She remained silent and decided not to spoil the peaceful moment questioning his weird remarks.

“When did you paint this?”

“A few years ago. Before my parents stepped down from the Bakery and I had more time to sketch around the Park.”

“I see. And who is this person alone by the lake?”

He hesitated for a while before saying “There was always people around when I was sketching and getting reference shots for the painting. I just thought it wouldn’t look so empty with someone in it.”

“But it feels like this person is kinda lonely.”

She felt him before seeing him, but when she turned to look, he was already by her side inspecting the painting, a concerned expression on his face.

“Hmm… I guess you are right. I had never looked at it that way.” he said, looking at her with his brows furrowed.

“I’m sorry, Peeta. Forget what I just said. You know the painting is perfect, I was speaking absentmindedly and didn’t mean to criticize like that…” she trailed off, feeling guilty for saying something mean after he exposed his work to her, even when he was clearly shy about it.

“What are you talking about? It is very important to me that people speak their minds when they see my paintings. It shows the real emotional reaction. And this is what art is really about, right? People have different backgrounds and different experiences in life, so it is only fair they would have different interpretations of the same piece. Thanks for being honest.” he said with a genuinely happy smile.

Katniss stared at him for a while, trying to decide if she believed in what he had said. How wouldn’t she? He looked satisfied even, touching her shoulder and directing her towards another painting.

“And what do you think of this other one here?” he said, pointing to a smaller, black frame. It pictured a wide field dotted with bright yellow dandelions.

She remembered the meadow behind her parents’ old house during the spring. It would be filled with yellow dots until one lost sight of them. She had fond memories of her father and Prim picking up dandelions that they would take home to her mother in a bouquet.

“It’s very beautiful, Peeta.” she said quietly.

She took her time walking around looking at other paintings and sketches, checking some canvas on a pile on the floor and talking to Peeta about them. They lost track of time until the warm smell of baked chicken invaded the room. Peeta stood up in a hurry and took her by the hand again.

“I can’t believe I forgot to check on the chicken!” and with that they went downstairs back to the kitchen. He looked a bit exasperated and walked quickly to the oven.

At that point, Katniss was feeling rather comfortable with his presence and joked “I wonder if that means I’ll really win that bet...”

Peeta had just taken the chicken out of the oven and was examining it with a tool that Katniss had to idea even existed. He turned to her with a triumphant smile.

“You wish. Let’s wait and see.”

He insisted on setting the table by himself and shortly after called for Katniss to join him at the dining table. She stepped in the room and first noticed the dim lights. It was still day outside but the sky was getting darker by the hour. Looking at the mid length table, there was a lovely setting with beautiful hardware and a bottle of white wine.

It definitely looked romantic.

To top the whole thing, standing at the opposite side of the table was Peeta, with an expectant look on his face. Katniss could do him right there, on the table, forget about lunch, dinner or whatever that was. But she had a bet to decide upon. Of course she already knew the outcome, it played an important part on her next moves.

He walked towards her and pulled a chair, gesturing her to sit down. She rolled her eyes at him and laughed.

“Peeta, everything looks great, but the chair thing is too much, isn’t it? What year is this?” she teased.

“The year I finally got to spend a few hours with you.” he said, smiling.

What a cheesy pickup line, she thought. But sure as hell she wouldn’t mind listening to more cheesy pickup lines from him. As long as it was her at the other end of the line.

Katniss sat on the chair he was holding, and Peeta chose not to sit opposite her, but by her side. He smiled and served them with generous portions of the baked chicken and side salad. She kept stealing glances at his every move, taking her time to watch his hands. Strong hands from years of work in the Bakery, and calloused fingers. There were also some white scars across the back of his hands and going up his forearms. Some looked like faded burn scars and others were just thin lines, almost imperceptible. All that must have hurt a lot, but she could see that his passion for baking overcame all that.

She felt a renewed rush of warmth down her belly. Better stop imagining things he could do to her with those hands, at least for now, she thought.

“So, Katniss” said Peeta with one eyebrow raised “go ahead and tell me how horrible it tastes.”

She feigned a scowl and took the first bite. It was so good it didn’t even taste like plain baked chicken. She managed not to moan this time and said “Well, Prim has been cooking better chicken since she was 15.”

His smile faltered a bit and he stared at his own untouched food for a while, and Katniss could see that he was thinking very hard about something. He took his fork and grabbed a bite. Then his expression started to soften and he looked at Katniss with accusing eyes.

She started laughing and finally said “Of course I was joking, Peeta! It is delicious!”

“No. But I was really worried for a while there. I was reviewing everything I added to the recipe and wondering what I did wrong. I even checked if the temperature was ideal before serving…”

“Fine, fine, I get it. But anyway, this bet was doomed since the beginning, who would bet against your cooking skills?’

“You did. And how were you supposed to know how well I cook?”

“What? Everyone knows that.”

“Everyone? What am I, like a chef whore?” he said, laughing too. “I only ever cooked for myself, my family and occasionally for a few friends”.

“Really? Then why are you cooking for me?”

He grinned at her.

“You’re my first neighbour since I got a place for myself. So I guess now it’s family, friends and neighbour. See, you don’t get to walk away from me now, this here is a bond.” he said, gesturing between them.

***

♪♫♬

I get off on you  
Getting off on me  
I give you what you want  
But nothing is for free

It's all give and take  
Kinda life we make  
When your line is crossed

I get off  
I get off

♪♫♬

***

They ate in between conversations, teasing and complaining about their siblings. When they were finished, Katniss didn't want to leave, but she knew she had to. And they would still be seeing each other that night, in a way.

"Peeta, this was lovely." she held her breath, gathering courage to continue. "As the wonderful loser that I am, I was wondering when you would be doing that cooking you promised." she said, hoping he would say some day still that week.

He didn't look fazed and replied simply "What are you doing tomorrow?”

She coughed on her wine glass at that. Tomorrow? Not what she had in mind, but she could work with it.

"Hm… as a matter of fact, I'm free tomorrow." 

"How about dinner tomorrow then? I can stop by your place or you can come over by 6pm."

"Deal. I will come over, I don't have many kitchen supplies or any of your fancy stuff. What are you going to cook?"

"Oh, I wouldn't spoil the surprise." he said, smile plastered on his face.

Katniss rolled her eyes and got up, arranging the dishes until his hand touched her wrist and stopped her from continuing.

"What? Let me guess, guests don't do dishes at your place."

"You bet they don't." he said, standing up and taking the plates from her hands.

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"Fine. I'm going back home then, Peeta. Thanks so much for everything, this is the most fun I've had in a very long while. Also thanks for making me feel useless in the kitchen, I always knew I had great potential." she said with a chuckle, accompanying him to the kitchen.

Peeta laughed and placed the dishes in the sink. He washed his hands and turned to her, saying "No, no, thank you for accepting the offer. I would be sitting around doing nothing all day if it wasn't for you."

"I know right? Totally saved your life!" she said imitating a high pitched tone.

They laughed and he walked her to the front door, holding it open for her to cross the threshold. When she did, he grabbed his keys and closed the door, walking a few steps behind her.

"What are you doing?" she asked, looking at him like he had grown two heads.

"You never know what dangers lurk within the shadows these days. I wouldn't let you cross your neighbour's yard by yourself." he said, putting a brave expression on, his hand on his hips in a hero pose.

"God. Will I ever be free from you?" she said with a scowl.

"I'm hoping you won't."

She looked at him and saw an honest, almost hopeful glint in his eyes. The butterflies in her stomach chose that moment to start dancing around and she looked away, aiming her firm steps towards her house in silence. When they arrived, she climbed to the porch and turned to him. He stood in the first step, looking at her with a smile.

"Thanks again, Peeta. See you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow." he said almost inaudibly.

She took a few more seconds looking at him before smiling and turning the keys to open the door. She waved a final goodbye and closed to door without giving him a second glance. As soon as the door was closed, she leaned her back on it and silently let her body slide do the floor. She closed her eyes and it was like he was still by her side, his smell clinging to her. She remained sitting there for a couple of minutes, recollecting herself from the most weird and exciting day she had ever had. Then she heard footsteps moving away and she knew he remained outside her house a while longer too.

She took a deep breath and stood up, going upstairs to prepare for what she had planned. In her room, she opened her drawer and looked for any piece of lingerie that wasn't too old or too outdated. She scrambled through everything until she found a set of matching dark green lace panties and a cropped tank top with lace on its seams.

It was a gift from Madge and she was supposed to have worn it on the last blind date she set for Katniss, a couple of years back. Of course, it was unused as she didn't bother trying to please guys who would never care enough to please her back. She had had two hookups that eventually led to sex, but none of them made her fireworks go off.

Now that forgotten gift would finally be put to good use.

She stood by the window and spied on Peeta still tidying things in the kitchen.

Good.

Plenty of time for her to get her game on for the night.

OoOoOoOoO


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> I'm SO SO sorry for how long it took me to post this third chapter. Work has been taking all my energy and I wanted to review this properly.
> 
> Hope you are still with me and hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Comments and kudos are always welcome
> 
> =)

Katniss stepped out of the shower and looked in the bathroom cabinet for the hair dryer she almost never used. She found it and turned it on, styling her mid length hair with a brush to fall in waves over her shoulders. Any experience she had with hair and make up had to do with raising up a teenage sister with the most outgoing personality one could have, and helping her through parties and dates.

Katniss finished doing her hair and looked in the mirror. Her naturally straight hair wouldn't hold the waves for too long, but she only needed an hour or so. She put on the panties and tank top and moved to the full height mirror in her room.

A blush crept up her cheeks. She actually looked hot. Katniss didn't really work out, but she kept a decent routine of physical exercise in her life. Her constant rounds at the Park and occasional running granted her a slender figure. Like the rest of her body, her legs were toned even though she didn't have a muscular build. She had small breasts, but they were round and perky, and the tank top hugged them in a nice way. She turned to look at her backside and adjusted the hem of the panties. Her bottom was no different, regular size but round shaped and firm.

She walked in the shadows towards the window and saw Peeta was no longer in the kitchen. She scanned the windows in the second floor and saw that his room was dark, but the small window of the adjoining bathroom had the lights on and she could hear a faint sound of water running.

Her mind started to travel again, imagining how Peeta looked like at that very moment. She imagined herself spying from the shower curtains, watching a water droplet slide from his neck, making its way through his chest and down his abs to a perfectly cut v-shape that she could bet he had. Then it wasn't the water anymore, but her hands on his body, reaching for his neck and pulling him for a wet embrace. His blue eyes entranced on hers, head leaning in for a kiss.

She snapped from her reverie and immediately felt her panties getting wet. She cursed, rubbing her thighs together to get some friction.

The water noise stopped at his house and she fully opened the windows and the curtains, then made her way to the bed, turning the bedside lamp on.

Katniss adjusted the pillows and folded the duvet at the bottom of the bed. When she was satisfied with the setting, she laid down on her stomach and grabbed her Kindle. She could feel the cold breeze like a caress on her back and shivered, both because of the temperature and in anticipation for what she was about to do.

She turned her head to make sure her body was sufficiently lit by the bedside lamp and looked at Peeta's house just in time to see the light going out in the bathroom.

Then she turned her attention to the Kindle and started shuffling for something to read for a few minutes, without really paying attention to it. She waved her legs in the air slowly, hoping to catch Peeta’s eyes, if they weren't already glued on her.

It was about time.

A bold move, one she wouldn’t even dream about performing for anyone else.

That was the line she needed to cross.

And so she got ready for what she had planned to do.

***

♪♫♬

So much left unspoken  
Between the two of us  
It's so much more exciting  
To look when you can't touch

You could say I am different  
And maybe I'm a freak  
But I know how to twist ya  
To bring you to your knees

♪♫♬

***

Katniss moved on her arms for support and raised her torso from the bed, leaving her on all fours for a few seconds before she sat on her folded legs, still with her back to the window. She heard a clunk coming from Peeta’s house and a muffled noise.

A wicked grin filled her expression and she felt heat pooling in her panties. The thought of being watched by Peeta aroused her more than she could have anticipated.

She raised from the bed and walked to her dressing table, lifting a glass of water and taking a sip. She pointedly looked straight into Peeta’s room. She knew her plan was working because he would always be the one with the lights on at night, reading or sketching before sleeping, while she stole glances from behind the curtains or from the dark corners of her room. But that night, the room in complete darkness was his.

Katniss walked back to her bed and laid down on her back, picking up the Kindle with one hand and raising it until it covered half of the sight of her window. She started caressing her stomach with the other hand, drawing invisible circles there. After a couple of minutes pretending to read something interesting, her hand moved down from her stomach and she let two fingers hook briefly on her panties, dragging them down slightly. 

Her other hand placed the Kindle on the bed and motioned towards her left breast, squeezing and squirming while she played both sensitive spots. The hand on her panties drew circles over the fabric right above her nub and she spread her legs open, keeping her movements slow. At this point, she looked outside her window again and thought she saw some movement on the other side, but couldn’t be sure. She kept staring at Peeta’s window and pushed her hand inside the panties, making direct contact with her folds and releasing a long moan, not resisting the excitement of the whole situation.

Now her mind could vividly picture what she hoped was going on inside his room. Peeta would have a shocked expression on his face, hesitating whether he should keep looking or not. He would feel a discomfort in his pants and realize his rock hard cock was screaming for release.

A sudden surge of wetness poured down on her fingers at the same time she pictured Peeta taking his cock on one hand, moving up and down in the same rhythm of the fingers inside her panties. Her mouth was open in an effort to catch her breath, her body starting to move on its own accord, hips swaying to mimic the movements she wished were being caused by Peeta pushing deep inside her.

Katniss sped up the pace of her ministrations, feeling a familiar ache building higher and higher. She sat up and supported her weight on one arm, never taking her hand from her folds, and her determined and lustful eyes were glued on the direction of Peeta’s bed inside his bedroom. If he was watching, he had to be sure that the only one on her mind was himself. That she was writhing for him.

No longer able to keep her pleasure unvoiced, Katniss started to release breathy moans, feeling the unmistakable approach of her release. Her fingers made a fine work teasing her center until a strong spasm took her entire body and her head shot backwards, the orgasm hitting her hard and making her moan loudly.

Katniss let her body fall to the bed while aftershocks rocked more spasms out of her. She simply laid there with her eyes closed, waiting until her heart rate was back to normal and her breathing was steady.

She opened her eyes and a mix of pride and guilt hit her as soon as she could form coherent thoughts. She actually did it. Oh. God. She resisted the urge to bury herself under the covers or to run away from the room, and simply kept her eyes closed and her body rigid like a statue for a while.

She gathered enough strength to reach for the bedside lamp and turn it off. Then she rolled to the side and pulled the covers over her body. Without the possibility of eyes on her, she calmed herself. Maybe her plan had worked. A small smile played on her lips and she began to feel hopeful again.

And if her plan had indeed worked, she would need a better plan for the following day.

A good night of rest would be a good start. She let her mind wander until sleep took her.

That night she dreamed again. 

***

♪♫♬

I get off on you  
Getting off on me  
I give you what you want  
But nothing is for free

It's all give and take  
Kinda life we make  
When your line is crossed

I get off  
I get off

♪♫♬

***

This time her dream placed her in the Mellark Bakery, but she only knew where she was because it was her dream, for nothing else looked like the place she had been to in the morning. She looked around and all the furniture was gone, there was no counter, no decoration on the walls and no coating on the floor. It looked like it was being renovated, and as soon as she realized this, a loud buzzing noise started in the area where the kitchen should be.

She walked carefully towards the noise, step by step as to not warn anyone of her presence. When she popped her head through the threshold, she saw a man working with a saw and cutting some wood on a large table. He was only in his dirty old jeans and boots, his torso naked and sweaty from the effort.

He was wearing a protective helmet that shielded his face, but she could she the blond curls on the back of his head. It was Peeta, of course.

She was impressed with his strength, all his muscles contracting and moving to get the job done. Even in her dream she was drooling. She couldn't help the wetness gathering in her underwear and released a soft moan just imagining what he could be doing to her on that table.

Even with the noise in the room, her moan called his attention and he snapped his head in her direction, which was the exact moment when she woke up. She was startled but didn't feel quite as stupid as when she woke from the previous dream. At least now her dreams were being honest.

She groaned and got out of the covers, the first thought on her mind being to check on Peeta's open window. He wasn't there anymore, of course. Baker's hours. She dragged her body to the bathroom to start her morning routine and was soon ready to move to the next part of her plan.

Which was getting ready for a night she hoped really hard would end in many hours of fucking Peeta in every way possible.

Katniss drove to the closest outlet mall and reviewed the things in her shopping list, one very different from the one Prim made her. She hated wandering around on malls and intended to make a quick work of this. First stop, getting new lingerie. Then, a decent outfit. Last but not least, new boots.

Everything was planned out really well, except fate really had Katniss on its target that weekend. The second she stepped in the Victoria's Secret store, she bumped into someone and made the woman drop a bag and spill all its contents on the floor.

"Oh oh, I'm so sor-" Katniss started but got interrupted by a shriek coming from the blond woman.

"KATNISS?! What are you doing here??" said the woman, who now Katniss realized was none other than Madge Undersee. Katniss was so surprised that she didn't even try to run. Instead, she felt a cold sweat collect on her forehead.

"Hey Madge. Sorry about that, let me help you." said Katniss, gathering the lace underwear and putting it back into the bag.

"Yes yes, it's fine, but that's not what I asked. YOU in a lingerie store?! Did you hit your head? Are you alright?"

Katniss rolled her eyes and tried to dismiss her by simply saying "I'm fine Madge, I just need new underwear."

"You know Katniss, sometimes I wonder if you think I'm stupid or just dumb. We've been friends for what, twenty years now? I probably know your every piece of underwear, they are all rags from too many years and I know for sure that none of them were bought by you. Don't give me that shit." said Madge with a bothered look that was actually scaring Katniss.

"You are probably the smartest person I know, so of course I don't think you are stupid or dumb. Like I said, I need new underw-"

"Of course you need new underwear, otherwise you wouldn't be here, but what do you need them for?"

And then realisation dawned on Madge, her jaw dropped but she was mindful enough to cover it with both her hands. She wasn't mindful about the bag though, which she dropped to the floor again. Katniss' shoulders slumped and she knew she was doomed.

"Is it HIM??" asked Madge as if she had just unravelled the biggest mystery in the universe.

"I hate you." said Katniss, walking past Madge and going further into the store. She hoped Madge would be satisfied with that and simply leave.

But of course she didn't.

"Wait, Katniss!" she shouted, collecting her things from the floor and going after Katniss. "You are not going to deny me this! I've been waiting for like, forever, for this to happen! You will tell me everything or I will make your day a living hell."

Katniss wanted to scream, but she looked at the saleswomen and they were all staring at them like they were crazy. To be fair, they probably did look crazy. Katniss took a deep breath and simply said, exhaling "Fine, Madge. Just let me do my stuff and we can talk, OK? Damn."

"I will let you do your stuff, alright." said Madge, beaming at her.

But that, of course, didn't happen either.

Madge loved shopping and she clinged to Katniss the entire morning. She kept pushing really tiny panties into Katniss' arms and suggesting things she could wear and how she should wear them. Eventually Katniss convinced her that she just wanted something basic, but beautiful, so they settled for a matching set of a strapless bra and high waisted panties, black lace over dark orange satin.

Next, she intended to get something very simple like new jeans and a nice blouse, but Madge insisted on a dress. The next two hours went by with Katniss being dragged from store to store and she didn't even remember what were the first options they looked at. At last, she eyed a simple off the shoulder mid length grey dress, with long sleeves and loose shape. She tried it on despite Madge's protests and bought it straight away.

Before going for shoes, they sat down for lunch and Katniss told Madge about everything. Surprisingly, Madge was so entranced in the story that she almost didn't interrupted Katniss, but she kept cheering and making excited noises through it all. By the time they were done, Madge's eyes were shiny and Katniss could swear she was about to cry.

"Oh my God Katniss, I'm so happy for you! You will finally stop pining for this guy and get things done!"

"What are talking about, Madge? I wasn't pining for him."

"Seriously? I know you never confessed this properly, but basically everyone knows about your crush at this point. I always knew, Prim always knew. Maybe Gale was the last one to notice, but you are not fooling anyone."

Katniss felt a blush creeping up her face and couldn't say much in reply.

"I don't know why you are so worked up about telling me. Anyway, I heard Peeta was moving to your area, but I had no idea he was your neighbour. That house had been empty for a while, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, for two years or something."

"Do you think he chose that house because of you?"

Katniss almost spilled her food at that. "What?"

"I said, do you think he chose that house because of you? There are a bunch of unoccupied places closer to the bakery. It is too much a coincidence… Remember I always told you he watched you a lot in school?"

"You were and still are imagining things, you know he never talked to me properly."

"Hmmm… that's true. But I'm not crazy about this. He stole glances at you and I caught him doing it more than a few times."

"Whatever Madge, it doesn't matter now. You say it as if we were both in love and making wedding plans, but he probably just wants to get laid."

Madge laughed hard and completed "I strongly doubt it, but you should take this chance and go for it. Solve the rest later."

"That's precisely what I am going to do." Katniss said with an uncharacteristic smile.

They both laughed and decided it was about time they went for shoes.

Madge didn't complain when Katniss got a pair of ankle length black boots with heels, but made her promise that she would send a picture of her outfit before she went over to Peeta.

Katniss reluctantly agreed and they said their goodbyes.

OoOoOoOoO


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Thank you so much for all the comments, kudos and incentives to keep going! I wanted to leave a note with apologies for taking SO long to finish the story. My work load has been super heavy, but thanks everyone that's still here!
> 
> For this final part, there's love, smut, drama and cheesy stuff. Lots of cheesy stuff!
> 
> Hope you all like it!
> 
> Love,
> 
> OnigiriLady

By the time Katniss was home, she felt simply exhausted and almost wishing she had spent the day sleeping, so she could be as awake as possible at night. She loved Madge, but they were definitely from different planets. She glanced at the clock and decided she still had time to take a nap before starting to get ready.

She knew Peeta wasn't home yet because his car wasn't there when she arrived, so she simply discarded her clothes and fell on the bed, instantly falling asleep.

Her dream was blank until a delicious smell of baked bread brought her back to consciousness.

It was 5:30pm.

Katniss almost fell when she realized how late she was and cursed her way to the bathroom. She made sure to take a decent shower and washed her hair even though she wouldn't have time to dry it. She had every intention to make some effort on the make up area, but it was either forgetting about that or being late. So she decided to abort mission and simply brushed her teeth, put on the new clothes, stepped in her new boots and tried to smooth her hair on her way downstairs.

She hurried past their gardens to Peeta's porch and stood in front of his door, taking a deep breath and calming her heartbeat before knocking.

She raised her hand, but the door swung open and Peeta was on the other side, giving her the most gorgeous smile she had seen him use. Like ever. Something resembling a wolf grin.

He was wearing fit black jeans and brown boots, with a flannel blue shirt over a simple white t-shirt. All the shirt did was enhance his blue orbs and at that moment they had a glow of their own. He looked just ready to eat as the main course.

Katniss turned her raised hand into a wave and tried to get her speech back, but a low "Hey Peeta" was all she could come up with.

"Katniss. You look… absolutely stunning." he said, and even in the dim light she could see his pupils dilate and his eyes darken in a clear look of pure desire. He didn't try to hide the way he was checking her out, from her exposed legs to her curves and lips.

She stood there and instead of feeling like his prey, she welcomed his hunger and made it her own. She raised her chin in defiance and took the few steps she needed to almost touch their bodies. Katniss leaned forward until her cheek almost touched his and said in a low tone "You don't look so bad yourself… "

Then Katniss straightened up and walked past him, going straight to the kitchen. She heard the door close and felt him follow her. The air in the kitchen was warm and the smells were delicious. She scanned the counter for all the treats he prepared and found the fresh bread that had thankfully woken her up.

She felt his presence and turned to look at him standing at the kitchen's door, hands in his pockets and still eyeing her with the same hungry look.

There was no embarrassment in their exchange, just hurtful longing.

"Peeta, you cooked so much! You didn't have to" she said trying to sound casual.

"Well, I didn't want to get this dinner wrong." he said, no trace of smile on his expression.

"As if you could." she said with a light chuckle. Then she got more serious and completed "I really appreciate all this."

Peeta nodded and took his right hand from his pocket to comb through his hair, eyes locked on her. He seemed to make up his mind on something and stood upright, walking slowly towards her. His eyes were intense but she didn't back off.

"Katniss. Hear me out for a minute. I don't mean to scare you, but I just don't want to keep wondering if what is going on here is real.. you have no idea what you do to me."

He was so close that she could feel the warmth radiating from his body and she wanted to soak in it. She searched his eyes for a hint of playfulness, but she knew there wasn't any. That was it.

And she would take her chances.

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't, Peeta. I want this. It's real. What do you want?"

He released a strangled sound and said in a painful tone "I want you. Now."

They met halfway, crushing their mouths together on a deep kiss that had nothing innocent to it. Katniss released all the pentup hunger and desire in that kiss, no shame or regrets left for her to care. She was surprised at how responsive he was being, meeting her tongue with his own in a wild dance and pressing his hands on her lower back, pulling her body flush against his.

She could already feel his hardness on her lower belly and that only encouraged her more. Wetness poured from her sex and she used his shoulders as leverage to climb and sit on the stool, her dress climbing up on her thighs. She opened her legs and moved her hands from his shoulders down towards his ass. Katniss squeezed his delicious cheeks, making him press his strained cock to her wet core through their clothes.

Peeta moaned at the friction and released her mouth, throwing his head back and closing his eyes in an effort to control himself, but moving his hips to keep stimulating her pussy.

"Katniss… if we don't stop now, I won't be able to control myself…" he started, in a pleading tone.

She took his face in both her hands and made him look her in the eyes. "Why would you control yourself, Peeta? Let it go." She swayed her hips meeting his thrusts as if to make a point and that was all it took for him to throw caution to the wind.

He took advantage of her position in the stool and lowered his hands to her ass cheeks, picking her up while she crossed her legs on his back. He turned around and started to walk towards the stairs. Katniss moaned his name and released a whimper when he slipped one finger under her underwear and started to play with her folds.

Peeta took her upstairs to his room in an effortless walk, the only stops being to deepen their kiss and to press her back on the wall while he continued his ministrations inside her panties.

Inside his bedroom, he sat on the bed and Katniss stood up to remove her boots. She looked back at him and he was completely bewildered, messy hair and red lips, watching her every move. She looked around the room she was only familiar with from the outside, gave him a naughty smile and walked to his window.

"Is everything alright?" he asked with a slight concern on his voice.

Katniss smiled and instead of replying, grabbed the hem of the dress and pulled it over her head. She threw it in his direction and he caught it, staring curiously at her. Katniss bent over the window sill staring at her own room and waited for him to stand up and go to her. He approached slowly behind her but didn't touch her.

"Tell me, Peeta. Did you enjoy the show last night?" she said, tilting her ass backwards until she touched his cock.

He sucked in a breath, placed his hands on her hips and bent until he had his mouth on her ear and said very calmly "I had just jerked off in the shower thinking about you and this hot ass of yours… imagine my surprise when I looked at your window and saw you putting on a show for me… I just had to do it one more time, wishing it was your mouth on my cock when I came."

Katniss shivered imagining him doing all this and yelped in surprise when Peeta slapped her lightly on her ass. She wiggled her ass some more trying to get some friction, but Peeta stepped back. He turned her around and gave a few more steps back to admire her.

She was now only in her underwear and he felt his cock getting impossibly harder inside his pants. "You are so beautiful. So hot. I want to lick your whole body. Eat you out. You are wearing my favourite colour, how did you know?"

Katniss usually had a hard time feeling confident about herself, but Peeta had this power to make her feel desired and hot. She wanted him to lick her and eat her out and she wanted to be able to lick him and eat him out and let him come in her mouth. To start with.

"I didn't. I guess today is just my lucky day. And I'm about to get very lucky… take your shirt off." she said, walking to him and planting wet kisses on his mouth.

He obeyed right away and removed both shirts in one swift motion. She couldn't help but stare at his defined muscles and chest, touching his torso however she could. And the v-cut was there, of course. She gave a sigh and urged him to kick off his boots and moved her hands to undo his belt, while kissing his neck, then his chest and his abs.

She wished this for so long that she felt weak. She seized the opportunity to get on her knees, finish undoing his jeans and pushing them down his legs. Peeta was wearing fit dark blue boxers and she could see the whole outline of his member through the fabric.

Katniss licked her lips and looked up at him. His eyes were glued to hers and from her position she could clearly see how long his eyelashes were. He placed a hand in her hair and tried to get her up, but she protested and said simply "I'm not done here, wait for your turn."

She mouthed his girth through the boxers and palmed his balls in a calm massage before scrapping her teeth lightly down his length. Peeta trembled and released a loud moan "Oh my God, Katniss… "

Peeta kept his hand on her hair and squeezed a bit harder than he meant to when she pushed his boxers down and took his cock in her mouth in one quick movement. "Aah ah Katniss, you don't have t-"

"Peeta, I've been wanting to suck your cock for a long time, so just let me, OK?"

"What?" he snapped out of his haze and held his member in his hand, stopping her from continuing. "What did you say?"

Katniss pushed him hard until he sat back on the bed and released the hold on his cock to support his weight. Katniss took the opportunity to kneel between his legs and lick his balls while her hands worked his cock. She raised her eyes to him in anticipation and didn't break contact while she sucked on the tip, taking his full length on her mouth.

Peeta surrendered himself to her ministrations, flexing his abs every few seconds from the pleasure and not worrying at all about the sounds he was making. Katniss had never seen anything so sexy in her life and it only made her bob her head up and down more vigorously, releasing all the saliva she could on him to heighten his pleasure.

He looked at her with hooded eyes and said "Jesus, Katniss… you are so perfect. Keep doing just that… please." he said in between moans and gasps.

Katniss felt a surge of pride with his comments and used his knees for support while she devoured him, her juices flowing freely while she felt increasingly turned on to simply give him pleasure.

***

♪♫♬

But you don't know  
What you can't see  
Is what I do for you  
I do for me

I get off on you  
Getting off on me  
I give you what you want  
But nothing is for free

It's all give and take  
Kinda life we make  
When your line is crossed

I get off  
I get off

♪♫♬

***

Peeta was climbing closer and closer to his release, lost in his pleasure, but caught himself and used both hands to raise Katniss' face and made her look at him. "Wow. Katniss, you are so incredibly better than I ever dreamed... But when I come tonight, I want to be deep inside you. Come up here."

Katniss moaned at his words, biting one of his hands before standing halfway up and kissing him hard. She wasn't one to talk dirty in situations like this, but he stirred something in her that she had never felt.

"Seriously Peeta, how can you be so hot? Your body... your cock. You felt amazing in my mouth." she said, closing her eyes. Her mouth and chin dripping from sucking him.

He stood up and started to fondle her breasts with both hands. "I want to taste you in my mouth too… you know this looks amazing on you, but it really needs to go." He said, unclasping her bra and letting it fall to the ground. Katniss shivered when he bowed to take one niple in his mouth. He started to lick it slowly and play with the other with the tips of his fingers.

Katniss caressed his head and shook her hips looking for some friction. Peeta realized this and released her to turn her around so the back of her knees bumped on the bed. He bent down to kiss her stomach and lower belly and lightly grazed his teeth on the front of her panties. He bit it and hooked his fingers on the sides to push it down, leaving Katniss completely bare.

Katniss enveloped her arms around him and raised in her toes to whisper on his ear "I want you to fuck me so hard all the neighbours will know I'm yours." And then she bit his ear lobe and licked his neck tentatively.

It worked. She looked in his eyes and even through his hooded eyelids she saw that the blue was almost gone, his pupils dark and full of want. She wanted to believe that it also had something to do with her saying she was his.

She yelped when Peeta picked her up again, this time no clothes between them, and positioned her folds on his length without entering her. They were both soaking wet and he used this as leverage to rock his hips and make her see stars. Peeta pumped up and down her outer lips, the tip of his cock caressing her clit every time.

"Ah- ah… Peeta… fuck me already! Please!" Moaned Katniss, wanting more of him, everything he had. Peeta moved to the bed, climbing without releasing her.

"I am going to lick you senseless before I fuck you, Katniss. Open your legs for me." he commanded, laying her down with a serious expression on his face. She obeyed in silence, entranced with his sexy attitude.

He kissed and licked his way down her body, giving her shivers and delicious moans and all things that were too much for one person to endure. When Katniss thought she couldn't handle it anymore, he reached the light patch of hair just above her sex and licked there. His tongue was hot and she felt glad to burn with him.

She raised her hips to his face, trying to indicate that she wanted him on her wet lips, making her fall apart. He accepted her urges and tentatively licked her clit once. She spasmed reflexively and released a breathy "Yes".

Then it all became a blur. Peeta ravished her, he made sure that her whole sex received his attention, avoiding her clit on purpose. Katniss wasn't forming coherent words anymore, just moaning and moving her hips in search of her release.

Peeta wasn't touching himself, but he almost came every time he looked at her flushed expression, such pleasure and longing reflected on her movements.

"Tell me Katniss, what do you want?" he said, voice hoarse and dark.

"Let me come!" she whined.

"Yes, I will do just that." he said, diving to her core again, flicking his tongue expertly on her clit, alternating with light sucks on her bud.

Katniss was a mess of sounds and moans when her orgasm hit her as hard as ever. She never got to warn him and just exploded underneath his ministrations, whispering his name and trembling in her release.

As she climbed down from her high, Peeta simply stayed there, peppering her sex with light kisses until she could focus her sight again.

"... God. Peeta. This was… something…" she said in between heavy breaths.

Peeta chuckled and as soon as her breathing evened out, he started to devour her again. Katniss yelped in surprise and tried to get away from him, too sensitive still.

"Peeta! Stop, stop this!" She said, moving her hips away.

"Don't try to get away, I'm not done with eating you out today." he said with a dark and sexy grin. Katniss felt another surge of wetness down her pussy and trembled under his stare.

"I won't deny that I look forward to it, but we have other business to attend to right now… ." she said, sitting up and grabbing his arm to pull his body to her. He complied and laid his body on top of hers, giving her a sloppy and wet kiss that only made her want him more.

She broke the kiss and enveloped his hips with her legs, aligning herself under his member, looking for some friction. "Come on Peeta, I want you to fuck me. Hard."

Peeta growled his understanding and didn't need to be told twice. He positioned his knees for leverage and entered her in one hard push. They both moaned and held tighter to each other, but he didn't wait much longer to push back and sink harder in her wetness. They established a fast pace, Katniss meeting his thrusts with her hips, both releasing sounds and curses and blessings at their pleasure.

Katniss never knew sex could be this good. And from Peeta's reactions, neither did he. She couldn't control the scratch marks her nails imprinted on his back. Or the way her moans were escalating at an alarming speed.

He slowed his thrusts to admire her sweaty face, pushing the strands of hair glued to her forehead behind her ears. His blue eyes had tenderness in them, but his expression was still dark with want, never stopping his movements. Katniss also took the moment to look at him and see all her want reflected on him.

She used his distraction to flip them on the bed and sat on his cock, laughing at his surprise. She started to slowly sway her hips in a round movement, in a way she didn't even know she could. Peeta closed his eyes and grabbed her hips with such force she knew his fingers would be marked on her skin.

She placed one hand on his face and sad "Look at me". She wanted to be watched again. This time to be sure his eyes were on her when she came undone.

Katniss slid her hands down his arms and took his hands, holding them as support. Then she started to grind fast against him, rubbing her clit to his curls and making him hit just the right spot. She never left his eyes and felt her pride inflating for making him look so undone.

It was Peeta's turn to lose control, and he flexed his arms to pull her in, enveloped her in a tight embrace and started to pound his hips up in hard thrusts.

Katniss could feel her release rising fast.

Her walls contracted around him and her moans said all he needed to know. He took his hands to her hips and while his slanting never stopped, he started to move her hips with his hands to meet his slaps.

"Come for me, Katniss. Come on my dick, let it go." he ordered between his teeth.

It was what it took to take Katniss over the edge and she happily fell. "Yes Peeta, yes… come with me. Ah, Peeta" was all she could say before all her nerves exploded in a white whirlwind of ecstasy.

Peeta followed just a couple of thrusts after, feeling his whole body tingle and moaning her name.

They just laid limp for countless minutes, regaining the ability to breathe and think properly, waiting for the tingling feeling to subside.

Katniss still on top of him started to draw small circles on his chest with her fingertips while he caressed her hair.

They felt satisfied and peaceful, like a huge burden had been lift off their shoulders. She looked at him, not trying to control the surge of love that threatened to spill out of her. The man she dreamed about had nothing on the real Peeta.

He held her eyes with his own and the blue in them was now clear and bright.

"So… you are a cuddler after all." he said, in a light tone. "With all your tough attitude, who would guess?"

"What's wrong with cuddling?" she simply asked, not even trying to deny that this after sex bliss felt awesome.

"I'm not complaining, just figured you would be a hit and run kind of person"

Deep down she hoped he was just trying to keep things as far from awkward as possible, but somehow his implication that this could be just a fling made her heart ache. Her mood changed in a split second.

She raised her head from his chest and rolled to his side on the bed. Now she felt self conscious and even though she didn't regret any of it, she definitely didn't feel like sticking around just to get her heart stomped on. She couldn't. Not after this. She sat up and slowly looked around to the mess on the floor.

Peeta noticed the change in her posture and demeanor and sat up too, confused.

"Katniss? Are you OK?" concern obvious in his words.

She made an effort not to look at him and tried to sound casual. "Yeah, fine. I'm just looking for my stuff."

She motioned to get out of bed but was stopped by his hand on hers. He didn't grab or force her to go back, and somehow this made her more comfortable. She naturally moved back towards him and gathered courage to look in his eyes.

All she saw was confusion and the same hurt expression she was sure she had on.

"Did I do something wrong?" he said, uncertain.

She released a breath and answered honestly. "No, Peeta. You were perfect. I'm sorry."

His expression showed no change and he was about to start another question when she decided to get real about things. This was by far the best thing that ever happened to her on the romantic side of things. So what. She would say what she had to say and then leave. She wasn't that little girl with a crush anymore. Well, she still had the crush but she was a grown up now.

"Peeta, I know you didn't ask for any of this but I'm going to say it anyway." she said, and he looked down to his hands. "Just let me finish. This was the most amazing sex I've had, like, ever. More than that, we make a good team at it. But it's not just the sex, I mean you… you do something to me. You have been such a pleasant guy, and I know that this is just a fun thing for you, but I… I've wanted you for a long time. I wanted to try this at least once and it's OK that this was it. It's fine, really, I just don't want to g--

"I know you asked to not be interrupted, but I won't accept it." he interjected, looking up.

"What?" said Katniss, not following his meaning.

"Katniss. Really?"

"What is it? What will you not accept?" she asked, confusion growing on her.

"You… you really don't know, do you?" he said, with a chuckle. Her scowl showed up and he knew better so he started talking. "I have a feeling that this was heading to a very wrong path, so I will be as clear as possible. Katniss, I've been in love with you since we were little kids. How could you think this was just a fun thing for me?" he said, and she could see his vulnerability.

Katniss kept her scowl and just raised an eyebrow at him.

"You didn't know?" he asked, incredulous.

"Peeta, this isn't a joke." she said, starting to get out of bed again. And again, his hand on her own made her stop.

"I honestly thought that you knew. Katniss, I've been pretty obvious about this crush on you for my whole life. Everyone knew. Literally. Even Prim knew!"

"Peeta, I don't know what you are talking about. This is ridiculous. I would definitely know about something like that."

He laughed with no humor. "Well, let's see then… I fell for you on the first day of school. You were wearing two braids and sang in front of the whole class. From then on, I lost count on how many times I was a total coward and didn't approach you when I wanted to. At the time I just wanted to be friends, but you were such a bright presence that I always shied away."

Katniss was looking into his eyes and she saw only truth. It was an incredible story, but the facts checked. As she didn't respond, he continued.

"As we grew up, I tried to get your attention thinking that maybe if I got popular and as good as you, we would be in the same group of friends and I wouldn't be so awkward around you… newsflash, I got to the group of brainless jocks and you became something of your own. Of course I should have seen it coming, you were always so… one of a kind."

"Wait. Wait. So this is why you avoided me? It did look like you did it on purpose but I couldn't think of a reason for this… Peeta, really?" she asked, now believing his story but not losing the scowl.

"It doesn't surprise me that you noticed. I'm pretty sure it looked pathetic to you." he said, laughing lightly. "But then Prim started to show up at the Bakery and talk to me about things at home, and it had been like this for a while. Then she told me she would move and that she was afraid to leave you on your own. I confess I might have taken things a bit too far by moving here, but..."

"Peeta… I don't think you need to finish your story if this is going where I think it is. I feel ridiculous."

"Why, because a guy has been in love with you for twenty years?" he said, anger slightly building on him.

"No, you moron. Because I fell in love with you on the first day of school. Your eyes were so wide and blue, admiring all the new things around you, that I couldn't stop staring until the teacher took us in. Our stories mirror each other. And this is what is ridiculous. I feel like vomiting already."

"You did what? What do you mean?" he said, wide eyes staring at her.

"Yep, this is the exact expression you had that day!" she said, laughing.

It was his turn to do the closest his kind face could reach to a scowl.

"Peeta, I've had this crush on you since forever. Remind me to murder Prim later, but considering you guys are such besties, you can ask her. Madge knows too. And Gale. And his entire family… Prim was a double agent here, because she made sure I knew more about you than I should have. That brat."

Peeta was frozen, staring at her with a blank face. She could see he was processing everything and gave him a few seconds.

"OK so… we've been in love for years, therefore basically wasting our lives being idiots?" he said, slowly, but a smile forming on the corner of his lips.

"Sounds about right." Katniss said.

They looked at each other tentatively. He entwined their fingers and kissed the back of her hand.

"Want to make up for the lost time?" he said, mischiefully.

She didn't need to be asked twice and jumped on him to start their second round. Later that night they ate dinner warmed up in the microwave and fooled around a bit more. He showed her the pages of his sketchbook and she blushed whenever she saw her face in the drawings. They passed out on Peeta's bed feeling complete.

On the next morning, Peeta woke her with light kisses to her hair. "Morning, sleepy pants. I called the Bakery and told them I'd be late. But you need to get started if you are gonna make it to your work."

Katniss jumped from the bed with a wild expression, hair all over her face. "What? Oh OK. Thanks for waking me!"

"I cooked you breakfast, eat before you go, but I wanted to show you something first" he said, holding out his hand to her. She took it gladly and pecked a kiss on his lips before following him out of the room.

He directed them towards his painting room and pulled her hand until they were in front of the painting of the lake.

"I used to go a lot to the Park when I painted this, but I did have a reason for doing so. I would walk around hoping to spot you doing one of your rounds. One day I couldn't find you so I just sat by the lake and started to sketch a concept for this painting. I was there for hours, and at one moment someone was walking by the other side of the lake. I couldn't see exactly who it was, but I knew it was you. The way you walk."

"Oh Peeta… so this is me?" she said.

She looked at the figure in the painting, but realized there was a second silhouette now, a thin stroke of the brush suggesting their joined hands.

And Peeta concluded "Yes. And she doesn't need to be lonely anymore."

OoOoOoOoO


End file.
